OUR MISSION STATEMENT:We aim to provide
the highest quality non-destructive geophysical surveys to a broad cross section
of industries using a multi-disciplinary approach. We aim to continually invest
in our staff and technical facilities so we can combine this with our extensive
global experience and pass this on to our customers as a service of the highest
quality. In recognition that geophysics is a relatively new and constantly
evolving science, we will maintain a commitment to educating and training new
graduates and the industy through technical contributions to research projects
and publications.
OUR HISTORYTerraDat was established
by Nick Russill and Rob McDonald in the UK in 1992 and is based since then in
Cardiff, the Capital City of Wales. In the beginning our dominant expertise was
in seismic refraction, shallow seismic reflection and geo-electrical techniques
applied to ground engineering problems. During the second and third years the
Company's scope had widened to cover landfill and environmental assessments using
the latest technologies. Work had developed from a UK base to a worldwide prospect
employing all modern geophysical methods. Since the beginning, growing
success of TerraDat has been highlighted not only by an impressive client base,
but also several business awards including Most Successful Welsh New Business
in 1993, an Innovation Award in 1996 and Young Entrepreneur of the Year, 1998.
The Directors were recently made Honorary Lecturers at the University of Wales
and Nick Russill recently addressed the Institute of MBAs talking about "innovative
ways of achieving entrepreneurial growth in a small business." During the
past two years TerraDat UK has invested considerable amounts in developing its
own internal resources especially in the areas of micro-gravity, seismic, ground
radar and electrical tomography and is now widely regarded as the best-equipped
company of its kind in Europe. Software development and refinement of precise
field acquisition methodologies have become an increasingly important activity.
The company maintains strong R&D links with the Universities of Wales, ETH
Zurich and Patras (Greece), and contributes regularly to furthering the leading
edge of geophysical technology at International Meetings.
Why
Use Geophysics?Geophysical surveys should be a routine part of most
site investigations and often represent the only way of getting total coverage
for what lies within the subsurface. The points below outline the clear advantages
of using our services... Low Cost - often less than £1,000 ($1,400)
will cover the costs for a typical small site. The value of the data acquired
combined with the reduced costs from being able to optimally design an invasive
investigation easily exceed the original outlay - not to mention the legal implications
of failing to use all the common tools for site investigation available. Rapid
Coverage - Up to 2 hectares of land can be typically surveyed in one day.
If surveys are carried out along profiles, then up to 5km can be acquired depending
on method No exposure to buried hazards - because geophysics is non-invasive,
operators or people on site Minimal Surface Disturbance - again,
since little or no ground penetration is required, the surface is not disrupted
which is ideal in urban areas, highways or landscaped areas. Easy to
Integrate - We take special care to present our findings in a format that
can be easily understood and integrated by non-geophysical specialists. Thus data
is presented as scale engineering sections or annotated plans. Integrated
Capability - We own all our own equipment which enables us to arrive on site
and select the most suitable method to use.
What
if it doesn't work?
We understand that some customers may be wary
of using geophysics - either because they have had a bad experience in the past
or they feel they don't want to take any risks. Consequently we undertake to offer
a competitive price that fits in with a site investigation budget and if, due
to various limiting factors on the survey, the data is not useful we will charge
a reduced fee and issue a short report explaining why the application was unsuitable.
This approach has proven very popular in the past with many innovative customers
who use geophysics routinely to investigate the subsurface.
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